Tilly Greene's Blog, page 26

Beverley Rae and the Perfect Gift is a Book

My favorite gift book for children is Fox in Socks by Dr. Seuss. I used to read this book to my daughter from when she was very young to well after she was able to read it on her. Not only is the book fun, but we gave it a twist by making it a challenge. Every night she would give me the book and say, "Bet you can't do it!" I would then try to read the book as fast as possible and see if I stumbled over any of the tongue-twisting text. I did, in fact, get very good and made it through several times without a mistake. Of course, that wasn't what my daughter was hoping. She loved to laugh whenever I fumbled. Buy a copy for any child and let them laugh, too.





One of my favorite books of mine is Howling for My Baby (Cannon Pack, Book 1), an erotic paranormal romance for those who like sexy along with humor.



Romeo and Juliet never had to worry about being skinned alive!



Sydney Skeller's father is spitting bullets over her reluctance to join the family business as a shifter hunter. The last thing Daddy needs to know is why—she yearns for a lover who's man enough for a relationship but animal enough to give her the wild ride of her dreams. After a treadmill mishap lands her in a tangled heap with Jason Cannon, she wonders if she's finally found her beast, er, man. One session in bed and one bite later, she's sure. Now if only she can keep her father from mounting Jason's head on a wall…



Jason is all man on the surface, but wolf shifter down to the bone. He's more than ready to stop "playing the pack" and find his one true mate, and Sydney of the luscious curves is the woman of his dreams. Finding out that she comes from a family sworn to eradicate his kind isn't a deal-breaker. But her outrageous plan for him to masquerade as the wolf in hunter's clothing, right under her father's very nose, could be asking more than he ever expected to give.



Buy book from Amazon



Find more Beverly Rae books at:



http://www.beverlyrae.com/



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REMEMBER

Commenting and/or asking questions on an author or blogger's blog for the day will enter you into The Perfect Gift is a Book contest for a one of a kind prize. Unfortunately, this contest is open to US residents only.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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MJ Fredrick and the Perfect Gift is a Book

Books as gifts—my favorite!



I'm a teacher, so I love to give books to children. My favorite picture books are the Skippyjon Jones series by Judy Schachner. They're adorably illustrated stories about a little Siamese cat who thinks he's a Chihuahua. He has Mexican-flavored adventures with things he finds in his closet.



Tikki Tikki Tembo is another book my students love, with the repetitive parts they can recite along. It's a Chinese fable explaining why Chinese boys now have short names.



For older students, my students loved Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume. It's a bit dated, the story of a fourth grader and the trials and tribulations he has with his toddler brother.



The children also enjoy Twisted Journeys, which are a choose-your-own-ending graphic novel. There is a series of them.





For the women in my life who read (sadly not many in my family), I bought my friend Trish Milburn's Living in Color. It's a women's fiction about a woman reconnecting with her sheltered mother after the death of her father. It's wonderful and I would say so even if she wasn't my friend.



The Phillipa Gregory books are fantastic for people who enjoy history. I particularly like the performances on the audiobooks.



If anyone is interested in steampunk, I can't recommend The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook highly enough. The second book is out now but I haven't had time to read it yet. It's the story of a female police detective in London in an alternate past, a woman who bears the physical reminder of England's conquerors. It's far too complicated to explain here, but it's wonderful.



For the men in my life, I buy David McCullough's books. He writes those big fat historicals.



I'm buying my dad Seal Team Six and David Crockett, the Lion of the West, both non-fiction, kind of self-explanatory.



You can see I think books make wonderful gifts!





My romantic adventure, Midnight Sun, might make a fun gift for someone who enjoys a sexy hero, a spunky heroine and an unusual setting—a cruise ship to Antarctica.



This wasn't the adventure she'd signed up for…



A sexy boss, a rough crossing, and pirates—all Brylie Winston wanted was a job to help her earn money to buy her own restaurant. She hopes to earn it by working as a chef on a cruise to Antarctica. But she's slept with her boss, which throws her off-balance even more than the rough seas and warnings of pirates in the area. And he's determined to have a repeat performance…



Bad boy former snowboarder Marcus Devlin is running from his reputation, sent to learn the family business after decking a senator's son and making the papers. So maybe he indulged in a last-minute fling before boarding his family's cruise ship to Antarctica. Perhaps Fate is showing him that wasn't so bad—the gorgeous redhead who snuck out of his bed is on the cruise. She'll be a lovely distraction during his exile.



But when South American pirates take over the ship, his instinct is to protect her and the other passengers. But what does a spoiled rich boy know about saving people's lives?



Buy eBook at Amazon









REMEMBER

Commenting and/or asking questions on an author or blogger's blog for the day will enter you into The Perfect Gift is a Book contest for a one of a kind prize. Unfortunately, this contest is open to US residents only.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

Facebook│Twitter│Blog│ARe Cafe

Tilly Greene kicks off the Perfect Gift is a Book Event and Contest

We have friends whose grandkids [from 3 to 6 yo] who come to their house a couple times a week and they're hosting an annual Christmas party, so we need a hostess gift - a book. I think the perfect gift for them this year would be a book they'll keep, love and read every year with their grandkids, is one that possesses wonderful illustrations that feeds the little ones imaginations and pop-ups! I happen to love pop-ups and often think of which one would suit kids I know.  And with all that said, I've decided we'll be giving them The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore and illustrated/paper engineered by Niroot Puttapipat.





Missing in Paradise by Tilly Greene

Contemporary Erotic Romance + Bondage



When the love of Mike's life breaks up with him abruptly, he doesn't know where to turn. Mary is an emotional mess who reacts without thinking, and immediately regrets her decision. Making things right with Mike isn't easy. It requires privacy to rebuild their love and share their lust. Neither expects their getaway to become a major news story.



The tattooed retired surfer and daytime TV star are opposites, yet perfect for each other. But paradise isn't easy on them. Their bond will need to stand up to the strain of a public-relations nightmare if they have any hope of making it work.



Mistakes are made and they need privacy to fix things, but what about the media?



Buy eBook from Ellora's Cave│All Romance│Amazon│BN│Sony



Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com



Facebook│Twitter│Hot Thoughts Blog│ARe Cafe







REMEMBER

Commenting and/or asking questions on an author or blogger's blog for the day will enter you into The Perfect Gift is a Book contest for a one of a kind prize. Unfortunately, this contest is open to US residents only.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

Facebook│Twitter│Blog│ARe Cafe

Me, Tilly Greene, kicks off the Perfect Gift is a Book Event

We have friends whose grandkids [from 3 to 6 yo] who come to their house a couple times a week and they're hosting an annual Christmas party, so we need a hostess gift - a book. I think the perfect gift for them this year would be a book they'll keep, love and read every year with their grandkids, is one that possesses wonderful illustrations that feeds the little ones imaginations and pop-ups! I happen to love pop-ups and often think of which one would suit kids I know.  And with all that said, I've decided we'll be giving them The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore and illustrated/paper engineered by Niroot Puttapipat.





Missing in Paradise by Tilly Greene

Contemporary Erotic Romance + Bondage



When the love of Mike's life breaks up with him abruptly, he doesn't know where to turn. Mary is an emotional mess who reacts without thinking, and immediately regrets her decision. Making things right with Mike isn't easy. It requires privacy to rebuild their love and share their lust. Neither expects their getaway to become a major news story.



The tattooed retired surfer and daytime TV star are opposites, yet perfect for each other. But paradise isn't easy on them. Their bond will need to stand up to the strain of a public-relations nightmare if they have any hope of making it work.



Mistakes are made and they need privacy to fix things, but what about the media?



Buy eBook from Ellora's Cave│All Romance│Amazon│BN│Sony



Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com



Facebook│Twitter│Hot Thoughts Blog│ARe Cafe











REMEMBER

Commenting and/or asking questions on an author or blogger's blog for the day will enter you into The Perfect Gift is a Book contest for a one of a kind prize. Unfortunately, this contest is open to US residents only.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

Facebook│Twitter│Blog│ARe Cafe

Happy Thanksgiving from the Greene Household

Originally posted November 26, 2009







Today is a day full of family and traditions. In fact, when I lived abroad, I used to take Thanksgiving thursday and the following friday off. I cooked a turkey - even though the butchers balked because they were all needed for Christmas - and the fixings. The cutie says he misses my "green salad" [its so special, it will never be made public], but I know it's not because he likes it, but because it's traditional to me and my family. Another one of our traditions, no matter where we are on this day, is to sit down and watch "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation".



Kitty gnawing on the lights, squirrel in the tree, seriously overcooked turkey [the mark of Thanksgiving throughout my childhood, sorry Grandpa, but it was so very dry], and Randy Quaid's character on the side of the road, well these and more make me laugh.



Enjoy your Thursday, be there turkey or not.



The picture above is from The Situationist and the link leads to an interesting Thanksgiving article they first posted in 2007, and again in 2008.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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Let's Talk About Books for Thanksgiving

Originally posted November 23, 2010



Not to long ago I mentioned in a Book Talk and eBook Talk about not liking to read holiday set romances and I also mentioned not understanding why, when I loved the picture book side of the holidays.




Well, I still don't know, but thought I'd share some of my Thanksgiving related picture and pop-up books that I truly enjoy revisiting every year.



Macy's on Parade by Pamela Pease is a pop-up with all the details of what goes into the parade on the side panels.



Milly and The Macy's Day Parade by Shana Corey and illustrated by Brett Helquist.  You might recognize his work from the Lemony Snicket Series of Unfortunate Events series and Blue Balliett's fantastic YA mysteries, but this is where I first discovered him and bought A Christmas Carol edition he illustrated and The Lump of Coal treat of a book - love his work!





A Story for Bear by Dennis Haseley and illustrated by Jim LaMarche may not be Thanksgiving specific, but with us having to deal with leaves falling, it's a perfect book to read, especially to others.  And on a personal note, it also is one we tend to get for family and friends who have a baby.  That's right new borns are given a couple books to get their libraries started and for the parents to start reading to them.  Very important.



Just love books!

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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The Perfect Gift is a Book Event and Contest is Almost Here!

That's right, I think the perfect gift to give someone you care about is a book, and the holidays are all about giving! So, with that in mind, I asked authors across the romance genre to share what book they enjoy giving and why.



It was fun to see what the authors and bloggers had to say and I'll be sharing them with you from November 25 through December 24.



To add a bit of festive spice into the mix, I'm putting up a one of a kind prize at the end.  There will be treats from a variety of countries and places all put together in a hip bag, and a few other things like an All Romance gift certificate as well.  What you need to do to be entered to win is comment. Comment once or everyday to be entered 30 times, that's all there is to it and enjoy learning a bit more about an author or blogger you've read or want to read.



Remember, it all starts on the 25th, so get your holiday lists ready to take down suggestions because there are some really good books being talked about.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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An Easy Way to Make Mince Pies in the US

Originally posted December 12, 2009



In my case it's a lack of skill and attention that led me to learn how to make Mince Pies.  They are very simple to make and don't take long either.  So here you go, something for workmates, neighbors, relatives, or yourself - a little something to put you in the holiday frame of mind.

Here we go, Mince Pies:

You need flour, sugar, milk, rolling pin, two different sized glasses, teaspoon, anti-stick method [I use Pam, but anything will do], muffin tray for mini muffins [bite size :-)], pastry for pies [I use Pillsbury, yup, told you it was easy], and Mincemeat. 

This comes in basic mincemeat and the other is with Brandy and Rum.  I've used both, but the latter is my favorite - can't taste it, but it does add a little unique flavor to the mix. 

Now, like there are recipes for the pastry, there is help around the next for making your own mincemeat.  Good on you for going there, but I get the Crosse and Blackwell.  You'll find it in your local supermarket in the "baking aisle" or in the "holiday aisle".  There are other brands, but after ten years of making these, C&B is my preferred brand.

Throw a bit of flour on your counter, roll out the pastry, not too much, but some.  Now take the larger glass and cut out your bases.  After making sure your tin is sticky proofed, gently push the pastry disk down into the muffin holes.  Gently.  Don't press the pastry to the sides and don't leave anything poking up, should be flush.

Next, use your teaspoon, put a dollop of mincemeat into the pastry cup, making sure you don't overfill.  When all the holes are filled, use your smaller glass, cut out the tops, and lay them on top.  You may have to put scraps together in a ball and roll it out again, but that's fine.

The last thing you do before cooking them is have a small bit of milk in a dish, dip two fingers into it, and gently [again with the gently] paint the top.  Now you're ready to cook them.

Cook at 425, middle of the oven, for about 15 minutes.

When you pull them out, they will be seriously hot - especially the mix - give them a couple minutes [no more] to cool down.  Using a knife tip, release the mince pie from the cup and place them on a cooling rack.  When you have them all there, add a pinch of sugar to each top, and there you go:  Mince Pies.

They taste great whilst still warm and with brandy butter on them, but they are good any way you can get them.  You'll often find Hard Sauce by CandB being sold beside the Mincemeat, as well as Plum Pudding, which the hard sauce can also be used on - well, after you've lit it up that is - but that's another thing.

Enjoy!

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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Did you blink and miss my exciting news?

Night Owl Reviews gave Highland Heat a 4.5 Top Pick!  I'm so excited about this because Hamish Buchanan, the gorgeous hunk of Scottish manhood who wears a kilt in the correct way - commando! - is and always will be one of my favorite heroes!



The other exciting news was that Tied Up For Love was nominated for a 2011 BDSM short story Authors After Dark (by the way, 2012 convention is in New Orleans and registration is open!) Bookie Award.  If you know only one thing about me other than I write erotic romances is that Greek Mythology is a love of mine.  To keep the joy alive, I write the Mythological Messes Redux series of which this is book #5, and the hero is Marsyas - he also happens to be one of my absolute favorite sculptural pieces.



Now, next month, December, Whiskey Creek Press Torrid is releasing both Call Me Lucifer and My Angel in one ebook and it's called Good, Bad and Kinky .  Whether in Heaven, Hell or on Earth, the people are good, bad and occasionally kinky :-)  By the way, Lucifer is another favorite hero of mine - the man has forever acquired quite a bit of bad press and yet he's one of the most loveable characters I've ever written.



My second to the last bit of squeeling good news is that Konnichiwa Cowboy , book 2 in the Branded series of which Ride 'em is book 1, is now available.  It's a short and slightly unconventional in a couple of ways, but I enjoyed my research into geishas and wanted to share the scorcher with everyone.  A side note to Konnichiwa Cowboy is that I'm almost finished with its follow up called Giddy-up (Branded #2.5).



The last bit of news I'll keep brief - there will be more about this next week - is that there's a big book event coming real soon [starting November 25] and I'm giving a one of a kind prize away at the end!



There you go - my squeelworthy news!

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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Fashion Adopts Bondage Elements with Elegance

Recently I've noticed high fashion has been inspired by the BDSM world.  I get Elle Magazine and over a couple of months there's been two full pages and a box under the table of contents that highlighted these elements and use the headlines to vamp up the connection even further.



One trend box was noted as "Naughty by Nature: Severe high heels and glinting handcuff bracelets succumb to the seasons's decadent fetish fixation" and accompanied by pictures of a Nicholas Kirkwood patent leather bootie and Jack Vartanian gold handcuff bracelet with diamonds [to the right].



A full page about trends stated "Lock and Key: Obey your fancy with exposed bonding and risque accessories secured with arresting wrist and ankle cuffs".  This page included pictures of a John Galliano* patent and suede pump with chain details, Louis Vuitton brass handcuffs and a crocodile and brass clutch with handcuff clutch, and Betony Vernon's gold collar [to the left].  I've noted Vernon's collection before on a Naughty Thought posting.



The last page I noticed was a shopping guide called "Collars and Scarves".  There were eight collars on this page and they were labeled collar, cuff, necklace and chockers, but they all encircled the neck much like a "collared" BDSM participant would wear.



Intersting stuff.  I wonder if this means we'll see serious lifestylers stepping out onto Main Street in their real collars and cuffs on date night - hmmm.



*this site has music, but can be turned off.

Tilly Greene

Scorching romances full of twists, turns and ties.

www.tillygreene.com

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